The Liebster Award: The Official Rules + My First Blog Award and a Few Personal Secrets Revealed

Last Updated on: January 27th, 2019

The Liebster Award – General Info and Rules

Most bloggers, at some point, have heard of or received the Liebster award, unless you are a newbie! From the extensive searches I have conducted in my attempts to learn about this award, I have visited a bunch of blogs and gleaned the following information:

This award exists only on the internet, and is given to bloggers by other bloggers.

It follows similar principles as a chain letter, in the sense that it should be passed forward to a certain number of people.

It can be misconstrued, depending upon your personal views, as either something wonderful (who doesn’t like awards?) or as an annoyance (a chain letter that involves work).

The choice lies within each of us to ACCEPT it, and continue PAYING IT FORWARD or to refuse to accept it, thereby STOPPING or INTERRUPTING the chain. However, if you stop the chain, you are only hurting yourself (keep reading for benefits you will have)!

Personal views play an important part in our choice to participate. Some people have refused to accept it and have made attempts to “break the chain”. There have been many people who have been nominated, yet refused to accept it, and now their blogs have been abandoned.

Variations have been made over time to the “rules”.

Marketing plays a role in accepting this award, as other bloggers are promoted. (This is not a bad thing, however, since people should help others!)

Other awards are a part of the whole “meme“. These include “One Lovely Blog Award”, the “Sunshine Blog Award” and the “Versatile Writer Award”.

It is said that the Liebster award was created to recognize and/or discover new bloggers and welcome them to the blogosphere. In the digital world of the internet, this seems like a nice gesture, in my opinion!

The Rules – different sets I’ve found:

Set #1

1) Post a short Q&A about themselves

2) Answer the questions the tagger has asked

3) Create a new list of questions for their own nominees

4) Choose a list of their own nominees and notify them

Set#2

1. Thank your Liebster Blog Award presenter on your blog.

2. Link back to the blogger who awarded you.

3. Copy & Paste the award to your blog.

4. Nominate 5 blogs to receive the award who have less than 3000 followers.

5. Inform them of their nomination by leaving comment on their blog.

Set #3

1. Post the award on your blog.

2. Thank the blogger who presented this award and link back to their blog.

3. Write 11 random facts about yourself.

4. Nominate 11 bloggers who you feel deserve this award and who have less than 200 followers.

The rules – yet another revision

Since the rules have morphed over time, and since the number of questions and nominees has grown over time, and since the maximum number of followers a blogger should have has decreased (it used to be given to bloggers with 3000 or less followers and now it is given to bloggers with 200 or less), I am taking it upon myself to revise the rules yet again in an attempt to provide clear guidelines for those who choose to accept the Liebster award. I must also note that the number of Twitter followers you have are included by WordPress.com in the number of people following your blog. Ergo, numbers are not always representative of actual readership.

The Official Rules Of The Liebster Award

If you have been nominated for The Liebster Award AND YOU CHOOSE TO ACCEPT IT, write a blog post about the Liebster award in which you:

1. thank the person who nominated you, and post a link to their blog on your blog.

2. display the award on your blog — by including it in your post and/or displaying it using a “widget” or a “gadget”. (Note that the best way to do this is to save the image to your own computer and then upload it to your blog post.)

3. answer 11 questions about yourself, which will be provided to you by the person who nominated you.

4. provide 11 random facts about yourself.

5. nominate 5 – 11 blogs that you feel deserve the award, who have a less than 1000 followers. (Note that you can always ask the blog owner this since not all blogs display a widget that lets the readers know this information!)

6. create a new list of questions for the blogger to answer.

7. list these rules in your post (You can copy and paste from here.) Once you have written and published it, you then have to:

8. Inform the people/blogs that you nominated that they have been nominated for the Liebster award and provide a link for them to your post so that they can learn about it (they might not have ever heard of it!)

How to Find Bloggers to Nominate

There are several different things you can do to locate bloggers to nominate for the Liebster Award:

1. Take a look at the stread of blog posts in your WordPress Reader. You can simply click on their links to be brought to those blogs. Some people display the number of followers they have in their sidebar.

2. Nominate blogs that you follow.

3. Click on the avatars (peoples’ pictures) that show up beside the section of any blog post (yours or someone else’s) where it says “X number of people have Liked this post” to discover new blogs to follow.

4. Try doing a search for blogs on Google, or on Networked blogs.

Remember, it’s best to follow blogs in your niche as well as blogs about your other interests.

I would like to add that you can nominate someone who already has been given this award, as long as they have less than 1000 followers/subscribers. The idea behind this award is to recognize new bloggers and help promote them! The benefit is that you get from doing this is that you get some promotion, too! (Think about it, if they are obligated to link to you, then whomever lands on their site could also click the link and land on yours. If you multiply the number of people who can potentially see and land on your blog, you can clearly see that you will get more readers, more business and reach more people. This is just another way to help get your blog “out there”!) 🙂

NOTES TO NEWCOMERS:

You have my full permission to use whatever information you have found in this post on your blog as long as you link back to my blog! You will not be accused of plagiarism (stealing someone else’s work) because I am hereby giving you my full permission to do so with this stipulation.

Furthermore, in case you didn’t know this, it is common courtesy to provide a link to someone’s blog or website whenever you find information you use in your posts. By accrediting them properly, you’ll avoid plagiarism issues, too.

I began writing it on the 13th, my late Nana Kay’s birthday. Nana Kay was my dad’s mom, and a super-sweet lady. Very opinionated, too! Loved by everyone, my Nana Kay was probably my biggest supporter when it came to my writing abilities. She encouraged me to write professionally, and to share my writing with the world.

She especially loved the poems I shared with her. She was proud of me, regardless of what I did. (I was no angel when I was younger… but that’s beside the point!) My Nana Kay loved me. I miss her. She died of lung cancer.

99 days after I hit the “publish” button, my blog was nominated with an award. 101 days after I created my blog, I got an award. WOW. Nana would have been proud! But am I?

The answer to this question is YES, I AM PROUD. (At least a week has elapsed since I was nominated, but it took me a while to put together this post, plus I had to give my last post some time to run…) 🙂

In keeping with the “Official Rules”, I have to thank Darlene Nemeth for nominating me for the Liebster Award. Darlene is a wonderful woman who loves blogging, and used to be one of the top commenters on this blog until I deleted a bunch of posts (I went through a rough patch and was not happy with a few things. As a result, all of my comments for these posts disappeared, too. I have learned the hard way not to delete posts! Sorry, again, Darlene! And THANKS for not holding a grudge! Thanks again for giving me this award! You are awesome!)

(Rule #1 done.)

(Rule #2 done. I have posted 7 images of this award in this post!)

Darlene’s questions for me, with my answers:

1. Why did you start blogging? Initially, I began my blog for two reasons: to keep an online “diary” and to share my experiences with others. I have discovered that I really like it! The only thing I don’t like is that I am such a perfectionist that it takes me forever to “be satisfied” with a post!

2. Who, what, and/or where does your blogging inspiration come from? My inspiration stems from my personal experiences and my willingness to want to educate others. I think I am fortunate that my blog is about my life, because I know I will never run out of topics or things to write about!

3. What does you family think about your blogging? My family has no idea what I do on the computer! They also don’t know anything about blogging, so I doubt that they think much of it at all. I think I could write an entire post about their lack of support, and their lack of knowledge. Of course, I would be partially to blame for this, as I don’t really share much of what I do online with them. Hmmm.

4. What time of day do you write the best content for your blog? I generally write at night. This is the time when I am most productive.

5. What is your favorite quote? I don’t have a favorite quote, but I recently read one on Facebook by an unknown source that stuck in my head: “If you want to be in your children’s memories tomorrow, you have to be in their lives today.”

6. What is the best thing about you? If you are asking what my best quality is, I would have to say that it is my honesty. I tell it like it is!

7. What makes you laugh out loud? I don’t laugh as much as I would like to. When I do, it is usually about the truths of human nature or human existence. I laugh when I watch TV sitcoms such as “The Big Bang Theory” (I love that show!) and when I see stuff on Facebook that people share that is funny.

8. If you were the main character in a movie, which actress would you want to play your role? Honestly, I have no idea. I think it would depend on the type of movie it was.

9. What did you want to be when you were a child? I have always wanted to be a writer. I am only now pursuing this goal, and I’m succeeding! 🙂 Of course, I’m also offering writing and editing services, too, so that I can help others attain their goals.

10. What was your favorite class in High School? Hmm. I have always enjoyed math, but did not like my teacher because he did not know how to teach, even though he had a mathematical mind and was (likely) brilliant. I did not enjoy science (I found it tough to understand) but liked my teacher because he was a caring person and made things seem easy (a good quality for a teacher to have, in my opinion), but he ended up dying, tragically and unexpectedly. I never took a science course again after that. I think typing was my absolute favorite. I took grade 9 and grade 10 typing in my first year of high school, and liked both the course and the teacher. My friend’s dad taught this class. He would always joke with the class, and was easy to get along with. However, he might have been a bit perverted. He used to tell us to “do your sexercises on page sexty-sex!”

11. What is your favorite social media? I think LinkedIn is in first place, with Facebook and Google+ tied for second. Although Twitter is growing on me, I’d have to say it’s in third place. I like LinkedIn for connecting with others, and like Facebook for seeing all the stuff that gets shared. However, Facebook allows me to play Scrabble, a game that I love!

(Rule #3 done.)

Some Random Facts About Me (where I reveal some secrets so that you can get to know me better):

1. I have false teeth and I love them! (I had all of my teeth removed at the age of 22.) I’m also a writer and an avid reader.

2. I am not racist or prejudiced. My son is half Spanish (his biological father was from the Honduras) and half Czechoslovakian (me). You can see how gorgeous he is if you check out some of my Christmas pictures.

3. I was 17 when I got pregnant, and became a mom at the age of 18. I am also a single mother. (My son’s father was abusive – mentally and physically – so I kicked him out of our lives, and I don’t regret it one bit!)

5. I like cats, but am allergic to them. Of course, that did not stop my parents from having a cat, even during my childhood. They had to have a cat in order to “not have” mice. I’ve taken care of several cats, too, especially Princess, when she had a hole in her leg!

6. I love my parents for not drinking or doing drugs. They smoke, though. I also love them for staying together and providing my brother, sister and me with a fairly stable home life.

7. I have lived my entire life as an overweight person. I have always had a negative self-image because of my weight. Although I still hate my body, I have learned to love myself for the caring, generous, kind, loving person that I am, and even wrote about my experiences with this in a guest post on Hunger For Happiness, called My Self-Esteem Does Not Define Who I Am. 🙂

8. I quit high school four times, although I ended up getting my high school diploma from an adult education center at the age of 22, and then spent the next five years attending university. In fact, I think it is ironic that I went to university to become high school teacher. I am still certified, and have been since 1999! I quit teaching in 2003, for various reasons, mainly because I didn’t like the town I was living in while doing so.

9. I passed one of my university courses by only going to four or five classes. I showed up on the first day, got the course outline, and read the textbook. I only went to class on “test” days. I got a B in that class.

10. My IQ is above average, according to several tests, but I am still a non-technical person, and don’t understand how technology works! However, I’m learning as I go…

11. I don’t think I will ever get married. I don’t believe that there is only “one” person for me. I think there are a lot… and I haven’t met them yet! I would like to exist in a triad-type relationship, but I will probably die alone! (…maybe creating a blog post… ha!)

I can tell you so many more things about me. In fact, that’s one of the reasons I started blogging!

(Rule #4 done.)

I Nominate The Following For The Liebster Award:

1. Wordlovers By Melissa Bowersock – Melissa is a very nice woman, an author of 10 books (so far) and shares tons of information about self-publishing on this blog. (I did an interview with her, too!)

2. Pamela Dale, who helps women become empowered through her daily letters (which I subscribe to). Pam is also a life coach and a super lady!

3. Sue Mitchell, from An Untold Story, who let me guest post for her, answered some of my questions, and has helped inspire me to write a memoir. Sue is a memoir-writing coach who blogs once a week.

4. Glynis Jolly, who claimed to be “just a housewife” in a LinkedIn group (which is where we met) but who clearly has a lot to offer… just read some of her stuff!

5. Shannon Lagasse, from Hunger For Happiness, who helps people with eating and body-image issues. Shannon is also an eating coach who understands how difficult eating issues are to have, because she has been there herself. She is a self-taught woman who offers a free Body Image Breakthrough Kit FREE on her site. She also can be found on Facebook

6. Deevra Norling, whom I met recently in LinkedIn. Deevra is a blogger and a freelance writer.

At this point, I should mention that I have had interactions with people listed 1 -6. The following have no idea that I exist, and I am hoping to “make their day” by presenting them with the Liebster Award! (Remember, discovering new blogs is part of what the Liebster Award is all about!)

7. Tia Sparkles, who has no idea that I even exist, but whose site I happened upon the other day. Tia is a blogger and a life coach.

8. Flawless Confidence, which is a site for men more than for women. (I know I have male readers, and this one is just for you!) I don’t know how I found this site, but there are some interesting articles on it!

9. Tim from A Daring Adventure. Tim is a blogger and a life coach. Tim has not heard of me, either!

10. LinnAnn Pike who blogs about a pit bull service dog, among other things at Silver Linings. I discovered this site a while ago, and bookmarked it as one of the “blogs I have never been to before or commented on,” so I am pretty sure this nomination is going to come as a shock to LinnAnn!

11. Suzanne Boothby, a blogger whose blog is (I think) one month older than Lorraine Reguly’s Life. Suzanne is a coach and someone who loves writing, coaching and cooking. She has an ebook that you can get for FREE.

I sure hope that all of these people are willing to participate and accept their Liebster Awards!

(Rule #5 done.)

12. I am adding this one since I have been notified that not everyone will be accepting their award, and feel as though this opportunity should not be “wasted”: Diana Marinova, whom I have had a few interactions with and who I told I was nominating before I even wrote this (and who somehow I forgot to record on my list because I can be forgetful…) 🙁 Sorry, Diana! I have now rectified this “situation”! 🙂

11 Questions for My 11 Nominees:

You can copy and paste these into your blog post. It will make it easier for you to answer them!

Lorraine Reguly, B.A./B.Ed., is an author and English teacher-turned-freelancer for hire. Her life journey is motivational and inspirational. Lorraine's book, From Nope to Hope, is a self-help book designed to help anyone who wishes to lead a happier life, and contains a built-in workbook. Lorraine offers 4 different services on Wording Well, including writing/blogging, and editing. She also helps others become published authors! Check out her services and see what she can do for YOU. You can also visit her author site, Laying It Out There. And don't forget to pick up your FREE copy of 20 Blog Post Must-Haves today!

278 thoughts on “The Liebster Award: The Official Rules + My First Blog Award and a Few Personal Secrets Revealed”

This is awesome! Thank you so much! I recently read about this on a blog that I follow and had no idea what it was. Thanks so much!Delores Wilson recently posted…7 Books I Am Thankful For (2017 edition)

Regarding your question about the award: Any awards badges can be used freely by anyone.

However, in general, when using images in your blog posts, it’s best to use a site like pixabay to get free images. This is a site that allows you to download and use images WITHOUT providing attribution to the creators.

Other pic sites often require you to link to the image owner/creator.

What I do now is find an image from pixabay, add a title, add a border, and add my site name to it. I suggest you do the same with all of your regular blog post images!

I use Paint as well as Canva to do this stuff. 🙂 Good luck and happy blogging!

P.S. Feel free to simply download the award images from my post and use them in yours! 🙂 Take care!

Thank you! this was so helpful. I didn’t really understand blog awards at all. I was nominated for a couple when my blog first opened but didn’t participate because I was so confused and still was till now! I really appreciated being able to search and find detailed info!

Thanks for a very useful post. I”m trying to educate myself about the Liebster award which someone had nicely nominated me haha. Sounds like an awesome way to share and connect with other fellow bloggers!

I would like to be nominated by someone…, but I know it will be not easy. I started in November 2015, so who reads such a baby-blog 🙂 A loooong way before me, BUT I hope someday it will happen! Hugs from Poland 🙂

Im from Germany and i was searching for more information about the Liebster Award myself, when i found you. How funny that this is actually a thing, not only in Germany! 😀

I just wanted to say, that “Liebster” actually means “favorite”. All the other translations are also (half-)right, but it means to nominate your favorite blogs. Liebster is also used as “darling” in Germany, wich explaines, that you found “boyfriend” as a possible translation. 😀 It is also a (old) way to begin a letter to your loved one, like “Dear …”, if he is a male. But thats more like Shakespeare would write a letter.^^

I think it is a nice way to help each other out on being recognized as a blogger, since you should link to other small bloggers.

thank you very much for this rich seam of information. Me too, I was nominated for the Liebster award and have had never heard about it. So I searched on the Internet and found some very informative posts. This is one of them and a good source for my report abaout the Liebster Award. Therefore I mentioned your great post in my report and linked it and naturally you should know about that. Here you can find my report:http://www.rosemarie-benke-bursian.de/über-mich/liebster-award

Thanks for the info on this award! I was nominated a few months ago and just now got around to accepting it. I’ve been putting together my post and realized I had little idea what the heck the award was for. Thank you for your insight on what sorts of bloggers to nominate and why I was nominated in the first place. I think I know who I’ll choose now…

Lorraine, Thank you for all your work into detailing the rules. I was nominated for the award, accepted, and nominated someone else who said she has slightly more than 1,000 followers. Can she still participate?

Sure, the rules are basically guidelines, Charissa. Since not all nominees always want to participate, it’s not fair to exclude the ones that do based on a a few extra followers, so it’s okay to bend the rules a little!

Hi Lorraine 😀 I was nominated for Liebster award. As a newbie blogger I´ve never heard about it, until now. 😀 I searched on the Internet and found your (this) great informative post. Thank you soooo much for this!! It´s very appreciated. I will accept Liebster award and I am writing post about it. I will use information from your post and provide direct link to this post. You will get all credits, because you´ve made such an effort and you deserve it. 😀 Thank you again for helpful information. Big greetings from Croatia! Milka 😀

Hi Lorraine, thank you for such an informative post. I just got awarded and had to do a little search to learn about it. Your post stands out! I am a new blogger and so excited to be awarded. Thanks again!

So let me get this straight: I should nominate bloggers with less than 1000 followers/subscribers for the award, because I’ve been searching for bloggers with less than 200 as another source told me to, while yet another told me it was 500 or less. What is the correct number?

Matt, don’t worry about the exact number. Everyone had a different opinion on this. The key is to nominate fairly new bloggers. That’s all you need to concern yourself with! It’s tough to know how many followers a blogger has anyway, so just do your best! 🙂

Thanks. I’ve seen a number of bloggers I wanted to nominate but their follower number wasn’t publicly displayed so I didn’t know what to do. I guess I’ll just wing it and nominate whoever I like (based on their archives and when they starting posting, of course) 🙂

Hi Lorraine, thank you so much for all of this information- it helped out a lot! I will definitely be including your rules (the best I’ve come across), and link back to you in my post! I was wondering if you might be able to help me out with something; I was nominated myself about a week ago, and I wrote my post, answered the questions posed and created my own questions, however I am having the hardest time finding other bloggers to nominate (as of right now I only have 2). Do you have any suggestions on how to find fellow bloggers to nominate?

Jessica, you’re not the first person to ask this, so I just updated the post with some suggestions. Please go back to the post and read the four idea found below the heading How to Find Bloggers to Nominate. 🙂 Good luck, and congratulations on your award!

Hi! Thank you so much for this great information. I am a newbie at this blogging thing, and I was reading a blog that was dominated by this award. I was really curious about this award and you clear all my questions. Thank you very much. It looks like a nice post to do, hopefully someone will dominate me soon lol I will keep my fingers cross. BTW- I was reading other of your posts and I found them really interesting! 🙂 You are a great blogger!

HI! Thank you so much for this information! It is very useful! I was just nominated for the award and although I am really excited and so grateful, I am kind of freaking out! I am new to blogging and have no idea how to even discover new bloggers. Any tips on how to do this? It may sound silly but I just follow people who like a post of mine, I honestly do not know how to find people otherwise!

Aimee, take a look in your WordPress Reader. It will show a stream of blog posts, and you can simply click on their links to be brought to those blogs. Some people display the number of followers they have in their sidebar.

I don’t think it’s silly to follow people who follow you. It’s great! That’s how you start building a community! 🙂

I’m not sure how I feel about these awards now. I assumed it was a blog networking site that awarded the nominee but now that I realize it’s basically a chain letter it’s really quite silly. I mean, think of how overused this award has become, to the point that it’s lost all significance. Sure, it gives a fellow blogger a pat on the back but otherwise it’s completely useless. I could make up my own image for an award, slap it on my blog and pretend like someone gave it to me. I don’t think many people would check to see if it’s legit and I don’t believe it would improve blog traffic at all (this especially can be said for the Leibester award, which I’m sure will yield a few million blogs if you Google it). I really think it would be better to have an award that’s seldom given out and only to those who deserve it. In this day and age there are so many fantastic, well written blogs with a strong focus that deserve to be acknowledged… far more so than those blogs that only exist to reblog or post pictures of random things.

I very much agree with your sentiments. I am blogging for only two and a half months and already been nominated for 5 Lovely Blog Awards and 1 Liebster Award. Though I am so grateful for those people who read and appreciate my work and taking time to nominate me, I am yet to accept any of those awards. One of the reasons I have doubts accepting them is the lengthy procedure, not to mention all the issues you have mentioned in your comment. I will continue to do what I do and will try to improve any which way I can and maybe someday someone will nominate me for the kind of award I will feel I am good enough to accept.

Good. That’s what you are supposed to do when you “borrow” someone else’s ideas/posts, Aqua Mareen! You should always give credit where it’s due, especially on the internet. That way, you won’t be accused of plagiarizing.

Aw x Sure I would definitely give an honest review of the book as that is what would help you most. Also, I would definitely include you in my review where I would add snips of this conversation. I will also direct my readers to your poetry blog which I absolutely loved! I’ll put all this in that post. 🙂 Also, if possible, could you mention me or nominate me for an award? It would be a great encouragement and push and would expose my blog to a larger audience. I could use that kind of promotion and exposure. (self-promoting shame seeping in :P) But well, thank you for your help. I am ever so grateful. The review for your ebook will be up on my blog by the end of this month for sure and the review would carry with it the links to both your blogs and the snips from this conversation 🙂 Let me know if there is anything else I can do to help, I would love to. x

Hahaha, I did not expect it to happen so immediately but thank you. This recognition will take me a long way. x Now, I must follow all the rules you mentioned above and answer the questions you’ve mentioned? Thank you so much yet again. You are like my blogging angel, haha. x

Oh, thanks for letting me know of that blog link error, I’ve corrected that now! 😀 And, I would absolutely love to do a review on it x I will purchase it and post about it as soon as I’m done reading it x

Also, if you ever feel up to it, I would love for you to contribute to my blog as a guest writer, it would be an absolute pleasure! 😀

Thank you, again. You have helped me move forward and in the best possible direction. I am grateful 🙂 x

I see your link is working now. Thank you for checking and correcting that. I’m so pleased to hear you’re willing to help me out, too. I think it’s great that you are willing to show your appreciation for the help I’ve given you. It’s been a pleasure connecting with you and helping you, Radhika. I’ve a son, but no daughter, but I was a high school teacher for several years. (I’m still certified; English and Math are my teachable subjects.)

Please give me your honest opinion and reactions in your review. You can post the review to both Amazon and Goodreads (copy and paste works just fine), and if you decide to blog about the many helpful tips and advice I’ve provided you with, that would be great also.

Do you know how to take a snip or a screenshot? If so, feel free to take one (or more) of the conversation here in which I helped you “update” your blog. 🙂

Hi, Lorraine! I’ve added a Home tab to the site and I tried adding a Facebook app but it is not showing in the form of a button, its showing in the form of a link. I’ll work on it though 🙂 Also, I changed the latest post setting to only show 2 of the latest posts and then add an older and newer option. Thank you so very much, I received a distinction which made me feel like I had made the most of the two years of hard work that I put in. Thanks tons for all the help and time you are putting in to improve my blog, I have never received such a warm response to my queries anywhere else and I am infinitely grateful to you for paying attention to it. x

I’m so happy you are getting into the whole “blog improvement” concept. 🙂 It sure looks A LOT better than it did three days ago. 🙂 Congratulations!

FYI, I was wondering if you would do a couple of things for me. One, because you are a teenager and are therefore my “target audience” for my ebook, Risky Issues, can you purchase a copy of it and write a review for it… as thanks to me for all the help I’ve given you? I’d truly love your opinion. Perhaps you could even blog about this whole experience…? Word-of-mouth is everything when it comes to marketing, as you may or may not know.

Also, when you leave a comment, please fill out the website field correctly, as your comments are not showing links to your site. I suspect you will only have to do this once. 😉

FYI, my ebook is available on both Google Play and Amazon, but it’s cheaper from Amazon. And it’s a short read, as it’s only 8200 words. Please let me know if you are willing to do this for me. I sure would appreciate a teenager’s point of view and thoughts on it. 🙂

I made all the additions you mentioned including setting up the about.me profile and widget. The site looks and feels much better than before. Again, thanks a ton for your help. I have also added images to my posts & added a picture of myself both on the About Me page and widget. I have also publicized now! Thanks a lot for the encouragement. Also, haha, I’m sixteen and I love pink, I’m teased about it but I think it gives a very “me” vibe to the blog. x

http://theconfettigirl.wordpress.com/ is looking a lot better now! I’d add your Facebook to your “app” on about.me and I’d also try changing the “menu” of your theme by adding a home page and then going to your dashboard and adjusting APPEARANCE>>>MENUS. You want your site to be reader-friendly, right? Readers need to be able to navigate from one post to the “home” posts. Using the SETTINGS>>>READING will also help you to set your home page to show your latest blog posts.

This will take some playing around with… yeah, it’s a pain… but sooooo worth it.

And you should be VERY, VERY PROUD of yourself, for not just figuring this all out, but for what you are accomplishing in school. You have a great attitude, and if I had any advice for my 16-yr-old self, it would be to stay in school, study hard, and don’t give up, no matter what!

I’ve read whatever you have posted about the Liebster Award and I must thank you for helping me out. I have been blogging for a while now but haven’t been able to understand the nominations process for this award. I don’t have a lot of blogger friends and I have very few followers. It would be great if you could help me out 🙂

Radhika, I’ve peeked at your site, and I have to say that I must encourage you to continue blogging, but that you should do some tweaking to your site. When your blog improves, you’ll get noticed and someone will nominate you for this award. Trust me on this.

The things I’d change right now are as follows: 1. Disable endless scrolling and only have your home page display your last 5 posts. 2. Get social media buttons for your sidebar. Your current widgets don’t work and are not visible (at least, not to me). You can get free ones using about.me (find out how here). 3. Include pictures with every post. Remember to accredit others if the images are not yours. 4. Have a “call to action” at the end of your posts. What do you want readers to do? Comment? Share your post? Buy something? What? 5. Change your blog’s theme. Currently you are using The Fictive Theme. It’s a pretty pink, but it doesn’t give the reader the option of reading an “older” or a “newer” post at the end of whatever post he/she is reading. (Don’t get discouraged. I went through about 6 theme changes on my old site, about 100 tweaks, and felt the way you do right now. But don’t give up! Blogging is fun, and the rewards are worth the work!)

I’m sure that if you do these things, you’ll get noticed eventually. It takes time, and a ton of work (yeah, it’s not always fun!), but you’ll get there, girl. 🙂 You’ve already had at least 8 “likes” on your last post, so you are being read. You need to be shared, too. Pick up a copy of my free ebook if you’ve not done so yet. And read/watch the WordPress support tutorials.

Let me know when you’ve made these changes. I’ll nominate you myself if no one else does… 🙂

Thank you so, so much. This is so kind of you and I have made all the changes you mentioned. Since I’m new at blogging, I can’t say that the changes would be completely to what you must have had in mind but I tried my best to make it easier to enjoy. I have changed the scrolling options, the theme and the sharing buttons. I also added a few widgets and made it slightly more easier for guest posts with a Contribute page. Thank you so much for the suggestions. It looks so much more better! Please do check it out whenever you can and let me know if you liked it better. x Thanks a ton x

You’re getting there, Radhika! I’d still add some free widgets using the about.me widget – you have to get them by adding “apps” to your page on about.me and then install the widget. Having a picture on about.me is helpful, too, as then your readers will know who you are. 🙂

Also, keep in mind the use of images in your posts. Images give you a waaay better chance of people reading your post.

Oh, and do you use the publicize feature? You should! 😉 It’s helpful.

Keep on going, girl! You’re doing great so far. By the way, I like pink, too… My childhood bedroom was pink with white accents. 🙂

This post was exactly what I needed. Have seen nominations for this award on other blogs, but was just nominated myself and didn’t really know what I needed to do. Your post was really helpful and answered all my questions.

Hi Lorraine, firstly thank you for this post it explained so much to me! I have a question, do you think it is worth accepting the award? I don’t want to seem ungrateful for it but at the same time I’m scared that it’ll look cheesy and out of place on my blog, what are your thoughts?

Thank you Lorraine so much for this such informative post here! I just newly nominated for this award and I was searching for Liebster Blog Award and I found your amazing post. I had 11 questions to answer too. May I use your informative post by making a reference of your blog? Thank you…I am on facebook/instagram/twitter/stumble/pinterest as @mapkini

Can you simply give someone this award, or does it have to be given to you by someone else? I am new to blogging and follow the trials and tribulations of several mommy-to-be bloggers. I would love to nominate them to help get their blogs out there 🙂 Any advice? My blog is:: tinybabyg.blogspot.com Thank you!! Jessica

Georgia, I’ve taken a cursory glance at your blog. You write about some great issues… rape, judging books by their cover, etc. To help you along the way, please consider yourself nominated by me for the Liebster award. I know you wanted your friend to nominate you… but now you can nominate her!

Yep 😀 got nominated for it. …Thank you 😀 .. first timer and I was googling about it when I landed over here 😀 btw the 2nd Anu you now know is from Chennai, India 😀 glad to know you 😀 !! love the way you have written honestly 😀 I have been blogging ly for 7 to 8 months now so I guess I can learn lots from you 😀anuradhaforever recently posted…First Liebster award 😀 YAY !!!!

I was nominated to the Liebster award and when researching it, stumbled over your post. Thanks for setting it all straight for me! 🙂 As of that, I’d love to nominate you – you’ve probably done this a million times already, but hey, we all grow and change, right? 🙂 Here’s your nomination:http://mymayanadventure.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/liebster-award/

Looking forward to getting to know you a little better!Nik recently posted…Liebster Award

thank you so much for this post,. my blog was recently nominated by a friend and i have no idea what this Liebster award is all about. now i was enlightened and encouraged to join in the fun and answer the questions given to me. thanks again.Godo Joaquin recently posted…After a long hiatus….

I did a lot of research when I was nominated for this award. That’s just the type of person I am! I have to know everything! Some people think I’m a bit anal about my quest for knowledge; others admire me for it. I see it all as “just being me.” 😉

I’m glad I could help you, Catherine. Congratulations on your nomination!

Hi there:) I was given this award recently…I have 500 subscribers so do I pass the award on to a bloggers with less subscribers? I was awarded this a few years ago or maybe a year ago? Thank you for providing input on the rules too:)

Hey, don’t get so caught up in the rules. I didn’t. Do what you want and can. Remember the bigger picture – in the end, it’s like a game and not everyone will play.

Have you ever had a party and not everyone you invited came? It’s like that.

So don’t sweat the eensy-weensy details. And FYI, the # posted in WordPress.com widgets is not a true number either, since this number includes Twitter followers (if the blogger has connected his/her blog to post directly to Twitter when a post is published).

No problem. Glad you asked, because if you didn’t, someone else would have. Probably. 😉

Now you saved them the trouble!

And you already know how to add links, etc. to your blog, so no need to watch the vid. But suggest it to your blogging buddies, esp. if they don’t add their links “nicely” – please! It’ll save me sooo much time later on!

I will for sure:) I have thought of changing my theme up too….if I could, I would play with our computer al day:) Well….maybe as with my camera it is a toss up:) Thank you so much….I’m following your blog too:)

Good luck, Cowgirl! With everything! I’ve done a lot (and I mean a lot) with this blog in the last year and trust me when I tell you that it takes time… lots of time… to get it “just right” and even then, you’ll discover, as more time passes, that you’ll change things up even more.

Thank you for posting this! I got nominated for the Liebster Award, and upon doing research of what it was, I stumbled upon your blog. I put a link to this post in my blog award acceptance post and gave credit where credit was due. Once again, thank you so much for the hard work and the effort, and congrats on getting the award yourself! You deserve it!!!

I could really use that list too, Lorraine. I have been looking an looking trying to figure out how to find newer blogs. I’ve come across a lot of awesome blogs in my search (like yours) but they are all ones with huge followings. I did finally find a few but I need a couple more awesome one!

You shouldn’t ask for these awards. If you want an award, take the WordPress Family Award. You can find how to do it by clicking on my award in my sidebar. Read the post and accept it, and give me credit on your blog for doing so.

So I’m a little confused. I’ve been nominated for it. So is it that once I answer my questions and pass it on etc, then I am actually awarded it? I also have over 200 followers if you include Facebook and Twitter… Mel. x

Yes, once you answer the questions and nominate others, then you’ve “earned” it. You don’t count your FB and Twitter followers, only your blog followers. Take a look at some of the others who have accepted it, to see what their posts “look like” and you’ll get the hang of it. You can save the images to your computer and display them in your post and/or on your blog’s sidebar.

The first time is overwhelming, I know. But you’ll get the hang of it, eventually! 😀

Congrats and best of luck! If you have any other questions, just ask. I’m here to help! 🙂

As with some of the above comments, I too stumbled across this page because I had been nominated by another and went searching online for answers. Fantastic post and I gave you an honorary mention in my nomination for others.

Thanks for the information and don’t worry, I don’t expect you to answer all of my questions. After all, without your post answering my questions, I may not have gone ahead with it!

I’ve been receiving the award, but I’m one of those that choose not to continue it. Not because I dont appreciate it, I appreciate all the nominations, but because it’s not the nature of my blog. I wish I could do it but I made my blog strictly for my written works, hence I drop the nominations.

I also didn’t know there were so many rules! I have heard of the 200 sub rule which makes me illegible, but I still get nominated anyway. I guess when it comes to awards, rules shouldn’t really matter. It is the thought that counts after all 🙂

Awards like the Liebster award were designed to help new bloggers get recognized in the blogosphere, as well as for search engines to “find” you. If you decide to refuse acceptance, that’s totally up to you. But, you’re not making any friends by refusing.

Great post Lorraine! 🙂 I have been nominated for the Liebster and your post helped me a lot.. 🙂 Great blog btw.. Followed you via FB and twitter..:) Checkout my blog also sometime.. http://njkinny.blogspot.in Any comments on improving are welcome..:)

Hey Miss Lorraine! Thanks for all the efforts you’ve put into this supah awesome post! And to save myself of the trouble trying to paraphrase your notes about the Liebster Award, I just linked yours to my blog post, hahaha. I also linked your Poetry Perfected blog as my way of thanking you for this very informative post.

*By the way, would you be interested in following each other on GFC and Bloglovin?

Hi, I am an amateur writer from India. Someone nominated for this blog award and I didn’t know anything about at all and landed up in your page searching for more details. Thank you for putting it so nicely – it is very informative.

Also the details you have shared with readers gives a wonderful feel, makes a connection. So thank you once again. I would go through more in your blog.

Congratulations on your award. I remember my first one two. It had almost been a month since I started blogging here on WordPress and I recieved the Liebster Award. Fast Forward a month and i’ve gotten four of them. I love them :]. They’re very fun to write and it makes me feel good to know people enjoy reading what I write everyday. Congrats again on you nom. I wish you many more to come.

OK, I have he links to your website, your Poetry Perfected blog, and the link on how to post the image to the sidebar. AWESOME. SO, when I do decide to finish the post on the awards, your blogs will be mentioned and your links will be included. Thanks so much for your efforts…

Lorraine, I just ran across your blog while trying to figure out the OFFICIAL RULES. The person who last nominated me tied up 2 awards into one, so I wasn’t real sure. I have been nominated for two other awards, which I still haven’t followed through with either. I’m working on it! Your post was VERY helpful.

Hi Lorraine, I’ve just let my Liebster Award Nominees know that I am actually going to be posting their names on my blogpost later this afternoon (Australian Time). Some of them might actually drop by this page a little before then to find out more about what the reward means. Once again thank you so much for allowing me to provide this excellent link to them as its a great summary of what the Liebster Award is all about. Cheers, Michelle Davies-Stuhmcke.

Hi Lorraine, I’m starting to prepare an acceptance for a Liebster award I’ve been nominated for by lovely Dawn Hosking. These are great rules and a wonderfully detailed explanation. Would you mind if I create a link back to them in my Liebster award response? Let me know Many thanks.

Hi Lorraine, one of my fellow bloggers informed me that she was sharing Leibster award with me. It felt really good. Since I did not have much information, on googling I came across your blog. Thanks a lot for all the information and the helpful way of putting it across.there is a positive vibe in your blog 🙂

I hope you return, too. You’re always welcome here! If you like true stories, I write about my personal experiences on True Tales Tuesdays. I post special stuff on Featured Fridays. I can can alway use another reader/commenter; plus, it will get you more exposure for your blog if people keep seeing you over and over again. They’ll end up wondering who you are, and click on your gravatar (which you need to get, if you can) to find your blog.

Thanks, Darlene! It took a while, but I was happy with the end result… mostly. A lot of the people I nominated did not accept, so I was a bit disappointed, but such is life. I appreciate the nomination, and I did have some fun with it. I hope all is going well for you.

By the way – in Set 3 of criteria it says blogs of less than 200 followers, but in the rules it says blogs of less than 1000…. I’ve googled a few other Liebster Award recipients and I think the correct one is 200.

While doing my research, the original rules said less than 3000. Then, somehow, the rules morphed into less than 200. I have taken it upon myself to change it to less than 1000. Keep searching… you will find the original rules, too! Or you can just trust me on this, and save yourself some time!!! Besides, it is sometimes hard to determine how many followers/subscribers someone has without actually asking them (and sometimes they might not be willing to tell you the truth). I say, go with your gut, and dare to be different! No one likes clones! Be yourself, and do what you feel is right!

Hi. I am of course accepting. You asked that particular question in the comments though, not as part of the 11 questions. 🙂 Busy writing up this post now – but yea – it’s going to take some time to put it together!

To answer your question as to whether I look at blog posts as work or fun – at the moment it’s still just fun, but I know it can easily become work especially when one has many other things on your plate.

I was just given the Liebster Award Nominee. I follow your blog and came across your post. I would like to take you up on your offer of directing me to blogs that have 200 or fewer followers. I need five to post. This is a wonderful offer for me to recognize bloggers and get them followers. Thank you!

I could really use that list too, Lorraine. I have been looking an looking trying to figure out how to find newer blogs. I’ve come across a lot of awesome blogs in my search (like yours) but they are all ones with huge followings.

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